Faith Johnson, It's Time for You to Support Bail Reform

All of us are equal in the eyes of God. And yet here in Dallas County, we operate a criminal justice system in which we are not all equal in the eyes of justice. This past Sunday, a groundbreaking lawsuit was filed against Dallas County, challenging an unfair money bail system that cages Texans who are guilty of nothing more than being poor. This lawsuit will take time to proceed, but there is one person who can make a difference now: our prosecutor, District Attorney Faith Johnson. As fellow people of faith, we are compelled to ask Johnson: What will you do to address a system that goes directly against the teachings of the church and basic human decency?Money bail creates a two-tiered system. The poor sit in jail; the wealthy go free. It's not for want of large sums of money, either. Many of the people sitting in Dallas County Jail right now just can't come up with $500, or in some cases, even less. Right now, 70 percent of those sitting in Dallas County Jail are there because they cannot afford to pay bail.  Continue reading...